‘Sister Pat is a friend, not enemy’

This statement from Sister Patricia Fox just about sums up how she sees her vocation as a consecrated person in the context of the current Philippine situation: “As a religious I have been joining prohuman rights rallies — for farmers and their land rights, for political prisoners to be released. You might call it political, I consider it part of my religious calling, my duty as a Christian.”

She has always tried to draw the line between partisan politics and her intrinsically propoor and prohuman Christian missionary commitment.

I have known Sister Pat for a good number of years and I have always admired how she has managed to draw that line between partisan politics and the exercise of her religious calling.

She is a fearless advocate for the right to life and, consequently, for human dignity. Her personal mission statement is drawn directly from the words of Jesus Christ: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. He has anointed me to bring good news to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives and new sight to the blind; to free the oppressed and to announce the Lord’s year of mercy” (Luke 4:18-19).

But as a mature and seasoned foreign missionary working in the country already for several decades, Sister Pat has always refrained from making pronouncements on the state of politics in the country. She has often told me: “I leave that to the Filipinos.”

The government, instead of picking her up and putting her under investigation, should have recognized the merit of her endeavours and recognized her as an ally in their fight against poverty and corruption.

She has been dedicating all her life to these causes. All of us who know her testify to her love for us, Filipinos, especially the poor and the downtrodden, and her commitment to the welfare and a better future for the Philippines.

Let us make no mistake about it: Sister Patricia is a friend, not an enemy of the country. She should be accorded the traditional Filipino delicadeza and respect we normally extend to both guests and friends.

FR. WILFREDO T. DULAY, MDJ, convener, Religious Discernment Group, [email protected]